Mary and Protestants

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Nelka

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I had the usual worshipping Mary chat yesterday and explained that we do not but they won’t have it because we have statues.

I said about having pictures of our children but they brushed past that and said about the idols.

I know I could say that we do not worship Mary until the cows come home but they will not listen.

How do I explain idolatry to them and why we pray to Mary for help?

These debates seem more like interrogations but I would like to be able to explain it better and then it is up to them.

Thanks.
 
Nelka said:
I had the usual worshipping Mary chat yesterday and explained that we do not but they won’t have it because we have statues.

I said about having pictures of our children but they brushed past that and said about the idols.

I know I could say that we do not worship Mary until the cows come home but they will not listen.

How do I explain idolatry to them and why we pray to Mary for help?

These debates seem more like interrogations but I would like to be able to explain it better and then it is up to them.

Thanks.
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Catholics do not worship Mary or the saints. They are honored & venerated as intercessors through prayer. It is only God that is worshipped.
 
You’re discussion with them from your perspective is to help them understand something other than what they believe. That is not likely going to happen. Not any more likely than a brick wall believing in it. Seriously, I would just let it go. I’m from a protestant family and I’m the only Catholic. I’ve been there. I’ve provided scriptural basis for everything. In the end those people have already decided that you’re wrong and IT is wrong.

Most often those people like to take bits and pieces of scripture and throw it at us like throwing a dart at someone. Taking that scripture completely out of context. Not by their own fault but because they simply don’t understand that context to begin with. Not only that but the whole protestant theology thing encourages that sort of behavior. In other words, they believe they can read it and interpret it and however they interpret it, that is the final word. And then their pride will get in the way. So at no point are they likely to agree that THEY have interpreted it wrongly.
 
I’ve often wondered what would happen if we showed them the frustration we face by simply giving them a copy of all the posts that have/will appear on a thread such as this.
 
Father Jeff may help:
youtube.com/watch?v=jkEeYySmk3E
Bring up other statues too, like of the Lincoln Memorial or Statue of Liberty.

Also, I find the words Dulia and Latria. Latria is the Divine Worship reserved ONLY to God,
while Dulia, reverence and honor, goes to the Saints and is TOO small to be given to God.
Then there’s Dulia and Hyperdulia, in which Dulia is given to Saints and Angels, where as
Hyperdulia is given only to Mary, the Mother of God and Queen of Heaven. Again, though,
even Hyperdulia is too small for God and Latria FAR TOO GREAT to be given to Mary.

Show how also Mary is the NEW Ark of the NEW Covenant, as the Old contained the Ten
Commandments, Manna from Heaven, and the Rod of Aaron (High Priest), where as Mary
contained the Word of God, Bread of Life, and the Eternal High Priest. How THEN can we
NOT have high reverence for Mary?

I hope that helps a little.
 
In the old testament, the Ark of the Covenant had statuary of two angels on top of it. How do they explain that if statuary is worshipping fase gods?

Moses in the desert held a staff and around that staff was the statuary of a serpent. And all those people who were bitten by snakes in the desert had to look upon this statuary of the serpent on Mosses staff if they were to be spared death from the bites of the snakes. How do they explan that if statuary is worshipping false gods?

Now if they say that they don’t object to the statuary but to kneeling in front of the statuary, then just say that it isn’t in worship of the statuary that one kneels, but rather it is a position of humbleness to the saint to whom we are praying.

One truth that is difficult for them to understand is that there are saints in heaven right now. Many of them do not have this concept, but have the concept that the resurrection on the last day is when heaven will begin for humanity. So obviously to say we are requesting a saint for a favor, they would not understand this, so they think that you are praying to a statue. But on the contrary, we believe in the communion of saints, those on earth, in purgatory, and in heaven.

May God our Father give you grace and peace.

Ps. Have you said your rosary today?
 
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